Burnaby sports car driver Michael Valiante and co-driver Richard Westbrook took the checkered flag at the Monterey Grand Prix on Sunday.
The win was the first victory this season for the No. 90 VisitFlorida.com Corvette Daytona Prototype after four consecutive podium finishes for the United Sports Car Championship team.
Valiante started the Chevy sports car on the inside of the second row in third place, but came out with the lead after the opening lap of the 11-turn, 2.238-mile Mazda Raceway circuit.
“Turn 1 is always interesting here with cold tires and cold brakes,” said Valiante in a team press release. “Fortunately there was a gap and I was able to position the car for the corner and come out with the lead. The car was extremely fast in clean air, and we were able to put some distance on the 10 car and establish a solid pace.”
Valiante led the race for the first 15 laps, while Westbrook brought the car home, leading for another 44 laps of the 112-lap session.
The victory gave the VisitFlorida team the lead in the prototype championship over the No. 5 Action Racing team of Christian Fittipaldi and Joao Barbosa in another Corvette DP.
The No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Chevy, which led for a combined 60 laps, placed runner-up in the race, finishing a mere 1.351 seconds behind.
While speed was a factor, it was the bold moves by Valiante and Westbrook that ultimately gave the No. 90 car its first win of the season.
“We made a little unintentional contact slipping down the inside,” said Valiante of his aggressive start to the race.
“It was clean for a while, but then we hit heavy, heavy traffic. … I was really boxed in. I got by one PC with a little contact … I made contact with a GTLM car, and I think it hit Jordan on the other side. We sort of forced him off the road and gave him a different line. But it was a good race.”
